In part two of our weekly Cinerella Watch, I'll be covering some of the more low-key schools who are likely to f*ck up your March Madness brackets.
Belmont Bruins
Everyone always wants to pick Belmont, but few have the balls to take a 16 or 15 over a one or two seed. I, for one, am among those missing that brave and courageous sack. However, Belmont's offense has been cruising lately, scoring 80 a game on the year, good for 13th in the country. They opened the non-conference schedule at Duke, losing by just a point after making an inspiring comeback. Now coming off a 42-point spanking of Florida Gulf Coast, the Bruins are currently in first place in the Atlantic Sun and have a big matchup with East Tennessee State that could help distance the two in terms of mid-major rankings.
Seton Hall Pirates
Seton Hall has two big senior weapons in Jordan Theodore and Herb Pope, who, along with athletic swingman Fuquan Edwin, form a sound foundation built for tournament success. The Pirates actually made a cameo in last week's top 25, but were bounced after a one-point loss to lowly South Florida. This loss is good for those who like Seton Hall as a sleeper, as the beatdowns they gave Connecticut and West Virginia were starting to earn the Pirates some notice. Talent, leadership, rebounding and a strong point guard is a great recipe for creating an effective Cincerella concoction.
Iona Gaels
Sitting atop the MAAC standings, Iona dresses arguably the top prospect in the conference in Scott Machado, the only guard in the nation to average a double-double. Machado leads the country in assists, and has the ability to take over a game againt any opponent. Though Iona's schedule is somewhat soft (87th toughest in the nation, according to realtimerpi.com), they own a blowout win over Maryland, a double-OT win over St. Joe's and a one-point loss to Purdue. I'm not saying they're a lock to dance, but if they do get a bid, I'm down to dougie with Machado.
Wichita State Shockers
The Shockers are one of the better mid-major schools in the country, with a strong early-season, 19-point win over UNLV and no bad losses on the resume. They've lost to Alabama by ten, Temple in OT and Creighton by seven -- all respectable blemishes. Wichita State is one of the better rebounding teams in the country, and they maintain solid depth with six players averaging more than nine points per game. Expect Wichita State to target Creighton on Feb. 11 as an important revenge game on the schedule.
Vanderbilt Commodores
With five starters coming back, everyone was clamoring to get on the Vanderbilt bandwagon... and then the games started. Now that everyone's off the wagon, I just bought a first class ticket. Their four losses have come without big man Festus Ezeli, whose size and presence alone alter the way opposing offenses operate. Now Ezeli is back, and joins two of the top three scorers in the SEC, including sharp-shooter John Jenkins and athletic utility man Jeffrey Taylor, who combine to average 37 points per game. Expect some big wins over the coming weeks for this talented yet under-achieving program.
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